A study published in the medical journal "Neuron" shows that sleep is related to memory consolidation. Neurologists at the University of Michigan also found that lack of sleep can inhibit memory formation.

Cambridge, MA (Merxwire) - Scientists Found that Sleeping Helps Consolidate Memory.

Sleep helps consolidate memory

According to a study published by Harvard University in the medical journal "Neuron" in 2004, sleep is related to memory consolidation. The study showed that evidence that sleep affects memory processing had been found in many species, including human and non-human primates, cats, rats, mice, etc.

Human sleep can be divided into two types: non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep; these two types alternate or cycle every 90 minutes. When the brain goes through various stages of sleep, neurochemistry also undergoes tremendous changes.

The study also mentioned that memory decline is caused by insufficient NREM sleep. When people sleep at night, neurons will act to eliminate some unimportant memories and consolidate memories that people think are important and want to keep. Memory formation depends on the "plasticity" of the brain, and plasticity relies on the activity of neurons during sleep.

Insufficient sleep time may inhibit memory formation

Research by neurologists at the University of Michigan also shows that lack of sleep can inhibit memory formation. The research team of Sara J. Aton and James Delorme found that lack of sleep can disrupt neuronal activity and memory consolidation in the hippocampus, making it difficult to store long-term memories.

In the experiment, the team made the mice go to sleep after being stimulated by fear. They found that when the mice were deprived of sleep, the phosphorylation of the hippocampal gyrus decreased, disrupting the memory that the mice formed in response to fear stimuli.

Phosphorylation of the hippocampus is to form memory. When phosphorylation decreases, the formation of memory may be inhibited. That is to say, and when sleep is deprived, neuronal activity will inhibit peripheral neurons and inhibit the phosphorylation of the hippocampal gyrus, which will affect hippocampal gyrus neuronal activity and memory consolidation.

Falling asleep fast is not necessarily a good thing

Sleep time is important, but what should I do if I can't sleep? First, make me feel tired so that I can fall asleep quickly. Is this healthy? According to "CNN," Rebecca Robbins, an instructor from the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, said: "The well-rested person does not fall asleep immediately, falling asleep does take about 15 minutes for the healthy sleeper."

"Falling asleep is distinct from sleep itself, which can be frustrating when one is extremely tired." "Nevertheless, be patient that sleep will come, and the more you stress about not being asleep, the lower your chances of falling asleep," Robbins added.

Insufficient sleep means that the sleep time per working day is less than 7 hours, negatively impacting many lives. Despite the adverse effects, short sleep duration is expected among young people. More than one-fifth of Gen Z and millennials said that they only sleep 6 hours a night. Sleep time affects human health and memory, adjust your work and rest to get proper sleep time!